Legal education: Law schools with close links to employers give students an edge in a competitive market

Schools can tailor their courses to meet the needs of the big firms says Jane Hamdy

Birmingham City University Law School runs the oldest and largest UK-to-US internship programme (Alamy)

Law is fiercely competitive, although this fact has failed to dent applications at undergraduate level with 21,725 students enrolled for law in 2013-14, up 8 per cent on 2012, according to the Higher Education Statistics Agency. However, just over 5,300 new traineeships were registered with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) for 2013, signalling an increase in competition for those seeking to become solicitors. The odds for would-be barristers are even bleaker.

To help tilt them in your favour, it's important that a chosen law school has good links with future employers. This is not just about securing the all-important internships and work experience that can add weight to a CV but also making sure the programme of study is in tune with the real world requirements of a busy legal practice. For example, the University of Law, the UK's longest-established specialist provider of legal education and one which boasts that 97 per cent of its 2014 full-time LPC graduates secured employment within nine months, works with over 90 of the top 100 UK law firms, and four out of five of the top global firms. It also has exclusive training arrangements with a host of leading law firms, giving it clear line of sight of the day-to-day needs of top employers.

21,725

students enrolled for law in 2013-14

These close connections help shape postgraduate programme content to ensure students leaving the LPC or BPTC are ready to go live from day one. BPP University Law School, which has exclusive agreements with 55 top law firms, tailors its LPC modules to suit the needs of particular clients: examples include a bespoke insurance module for Clyde & Co, business finance and business strategy for Clifford Chance, and private client and funds modules for Macfarlanes. This insight at postgraduate level also filters to the undergraduate work, with compulsory Professional Skills in Practice and Lawyer's Ethics modules clearly focused on the realities of life as a practising lawyer.

It is not just the in-class connection that counts. Law schools with close links to employers can bring in stimulating speakers from the Bar, top corporate firms and regional powerhouses to give students the lowdown on life as a lawyer, insight into issues affecting the profession and access to internships. These add a real edge to CVs in a crowded market as well as allowing students to make informed decisions about the next step in their career. Birmingham City University Law School, for example, runs the oldest and largest UK-to-US internship programme. The 20-year-old programme has placed over 500 students from the Birmingham law school in federal and state public defender offices, private attorney offices, American university law schools, law projects and organisations across the US, working on death row cases, criminal matters and civil litigation, offering invaluable work experience and insight to students.